Lockable closure



June 4, 1968 M. L. GREEN 3,3

7 LOCKABLE CLOSURE Filed Jan. 21, 1966 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 I |N\)ENTI..

MICHHEL 4 6255A! BY M ATTORNEY June 4, 1968 M. I... GREEN Y $338-$273 LOCKABLE CLOSURE 4 Filed Jan. 21,, 1966 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOK Mia/4:1. 4. eezw A'rfozum.

United States Patent 3,386,273 LOCKABLE CLOSURE Michael L. Green, 8660 N. Point Drive, Fox Point, Wis. 53217 Filed Jan. 21, 1966, Ser. No. 522,315 2 Claims. (Cl. 70-168) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to a lockable closure for aspirin bottles and the like. It includes a cap and depending tubular housing. A locking pin projects through an aperture in the tubular housing and is pivotally mounted eccentrically on the lower face of a plug which is rotatable within the tubular housing. The upper face of the plug is exposed through an aperture in the cap. Mutually cooperable means on a key and the upper portion of the plug permit the plug to be rotated by use of the key. Means are provided for limiting rotation of the plug from -a first position in which the locking pin is substantially retracted into the tubular housing to a second position in which the locking pin extends substantially from the tubular housing. The position of the plug in which the locking pin extends the maximum amount being intermediate of said first and second positions.

Summary of the invention This invention relates to a lockable closure for various containers and is particularly suitable for aspirin bottles, medicine bottles and the like.

Many containers for relatively dangerous substances are provided with a closure which is readily removable. This presents a substantial hazard to infants and young children who may be inclined to ingest the contents of such a container if the same is accessible to them as is often the case.

The primary object of the invention is to provide a lockable closure for a container which will prevent removal of the contents thereof. Another object of the invention is to provide such a lockable closure which is effective and yet simple and economical to manufacture.

In the present invention the lockable closure is of simple design and may be molded from plastic. The various parts are arranged so that when the lockable closure is in locked position, no amount of force will cause the parts to move to unlocked position. Unlocking of the closure may be accomplished only with the :mating key or in the absence of the key requires such tools and degree of manual dexterity to make it unlikely that the same could be accomplished by an infant or young child. Accordingly, when my lockable closure is engaged on the neck of the container and placed in locked position, the closure may be removed only by exerting such degree of force as will cause one or more of the parts of the closure to fracture. When my lockable closure has been molded from suitable plastic, many adults do not have sufficient strength to cause such a fracture. Thus, the lockable closure even when molded from plastic should be completely effective for preventing infants and young children from removing the same from the container in the absence of the mating key.

Disclosure of the invention Referring to the accompanying drawings:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a bottle and my lockable closure and key with a portion of the key broken away and a portion of the bottle broken away to show the lockable closure in locked position.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional view of a bottle neck and my lockable closure and key with the lockable closure in locked position as shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view of a bottle neck and my lock-able closure and key showing the lockable closure as it is being withdrawn from or inserted into the bottle neck.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line 5-5 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 6 is a top view of my lockable closure and bottom view of the key to show their mating relation.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along line 7-7 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken along line 8-8 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of my lockable closure showing the various parts in spaced relation.

The embodiment of my lockable closure shown in the accompanying drawings is adapted for use on a bottle designated generally by the letter a. The main body of the closure comprises a cap 11 formed from a circular top 12, a depending internally threaded flange 13 for mating with the externally threaded neck b of the bottle a, and a tubular housing 14 which depends from the circular top 12 and which has an outer diameter smaller than the inner diameter of the container neck b.

The tubular housing 14, near the lower end thereof, has diametrically opposed apertures 15 and 16 therein. The tubular housing 14 is of sufficient length so that when the cap 11 is threaded on the neck b of the bottle a, the apertures 15 and 16 are located just below the area where the neck b of the bottle a joins the main body portion c of the bottle a. The top 12 of the cap 11 has an aperture 17 therein which is of smaller diameter than the inner diameter of the tubular housing 14, thus forming an annular ridge 18 between the periphery of the aperture 17 and the inner surface of the tubular housing 14 where it joins the top 12 of the cap 11. The annular ridge 18 has a step 19 on its surface terminating at faces 20 and 21.

Numeral 22 designates generally a cylindrical plug comprising a main body portion 23. The main body portion 23 of plug 22 has two diametrically opposed bosses 24 and 25 near the outer periphery of its lower face 26 and terminates at its upper end in a stem 27 of square cross section and a flange 28 which encircles stem 27. The flange 28 is of smaller diameter than the main body portion 23 of the plug 22, thus defining a shoulder 29. A small step 30 terminating at faces 31 and 32 is formed on shoulder 29. The main body portion 23 of the plug 22 is adapted to slide into the tubular housing 14 with the top surface of step 30 bearing against the annular ridge 18 and the flange 28 extending into the aperture 17 in the top 12 of the cap 11. The main body portion 23 of cylindrical plug 22 terminates at its lower face 26 above the apertures 15 and 16 in the tubular housing 14. A pair of pins 33 and 34 are pivotally mounted at the inner ends thereof on the bosses 24 and 25 by drive screws 35 and 36. Numeral 37 designates generally a key which has a shaft 38 having an aperture 39 therein of square cross section which engages stem 27, thus permitting rotation of plug 22.

The pins 33 and 34 are of such length that when the plug 22 is rotate-d to one extreme as shown in FIG. 5, the outer tips project through the apertures 15 and 16, respectively, in the tubular housing 14, with the distance between the outer tips of pins 33 and 34 being less than the inner diameter of the neck b of the bottle a. See FIG. 3. In the position shown in FIG. 5, face 32 of step 30 bears against face 21 of the step 19. Rotation of the plug 22 which causes the pins 33 and 34 to be extended outwardly is limited by the abutment of face 31 of step 30 against face 20 of step 19. The various parts are so adapted and arranged that the limit of rotation of the plug to locked position as shown in FIG. 4 is beyond the position where the axes of the pins 33 and 34 are colinear. The significance of this arrangement is that when the plug 22 is rotated to locked position, forces exerted on the exposed portions of the pins 33 and 34 will not result in rotation of the plug 22 and retraction of the pins 33 and 34 into the tubular housing 14.

Since many possible embodiments may be made in the invention and many changes might be made in the embodiment herein shown and described, as will appear to those skilled in the art, it is to be understood that the foregoing is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

What I claim is:

1. A lockable closure comprising a cap adapted to engage the neck of a container, a tubular housing depending axially from said cap, a plug rotatable within said housing, a key, an aperture in said cap exposing a portion of the upper surface of said plug, mutually cooperable means on said key and the exposed upper portion of said plug to permit rotation of said plug with said key,

a transversely disposed pin mounted at one end on the lower surface of said plug about an axis parallel to the axis of said plug and extending at the other end through an aperture in said tubular housing, and means for limiting rotation of said plug from a first position in which said pin is substantially retracted into said tubular housing to a second position in which said pin extends substantially from said tubular housing, the position of said plug in which said pin extends the maximum from said tubular housing being intermediate of said first and second positions.

2. The device of claim 1 wherein said means for limiting rotation of said plug comprises abutting projections on said plug and said tubular housing.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,879,359 9/1932 Linfert 70-168 3,151,756 10/1964 Gruen 70-168 X MARVIN A. CHAMPION, Primary Examiner.

EDWARD J. MCCARTHY, Assistant Examiner. 

